Overview
Derwent London plc is a UK property investment and development company focused on offices and mixed-use real estate, with a portfolio concentrated in central London, particularly the West End and City Borders. Its approach combines property development, regeneration and active asset management; its portfolio includes office space alongside retail, residential and other mixed-use areas.[1]
The company’s stated purpose is to create long-life, low-carbon, intelligent offices that contribute to London as a leading global city. At 30 June 2026, its portfolio comprised approximately 5.2 million sq ft and was valued at about £5.0 billion; gross rental income for FY2025 was £218.3 million.[2][3][4] [1][2][3][4]
Products & services
Derwent London’s property offering consists mainly of office space, alongside retail and residential space in some mixed-use developments. Its approach includes redeveloping and refurbishing properties and leasing them to occupiers; the company describes its design-led regeneration as anticipating tenant requirements [5]. Office occupiers also receive DL/Members benefits, including shared work and meeting lounges, café discounts, local offers and events [6][7].
Examples illustrate the range of space offered. 25 Baker Street comprises 218,000 sq ft of offices, 28,000 sq ft of retail and 52,000 sq ft of residential space [8][9]. Network comprises 136,300 sq ft of offices and 4,900 sq ft of retail; Derwent announced a 15-year office letting to Databricks, with a year-10 break [10][11]. Other mixed-use examples include Soho Place, with offices and retail, and 80 Charlotte Street, with offices, residential space and retail [12][13].
In 2025, the company completed £11.3m of new lettings across 233,400 sq ft in 54 transactions; rents on open-market lettings were 9.9% above December 2024 estimated rental value [14]. [5][8][14][6][7][9][10][11][12][13]
Geographic presence
Derwent London’s property operations are concentrated in the UK, principally central London, with the remainder of its portfolio in Scotland. At 31 December 2025, its portfolio was valued at £5.09bn: central London accounted for £4.98bn (98%), comprising the West End (£3.80bn; 75%) and City Borders (£1.18bn; 23%); Scottish provincial holdings accounted for £114.2m (2%).[15][16][17] The company reports one operating segment and does not provide geographic revenue segmentation. It did report annualised net contracted rental income of £191.9m from Central London and £2.9m from provincial properties in FY2025—approximately 98.5% and 1.5% of the total, respectively; these are rental-income proportions, not reported revenue shares.[18]
The company’s London registered and head office is at 25 Savile Row, London W1S 2ER. Its Scottish holdings include Lochfauld Solar Park, and Derwent identifies The Hub at Easter Cadder as its Scottish headquarters. No employee distribution by region was identified.[19][20][21][22] [15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22]
Business segments
Derwent London reports one aggregated operating segment: its properties are individually monitored, but are aggregated because they have similar economic characteristics. The portfolio is office-focused, with offices representing 96% of portfolio value at 31 December 2025; retail, residential, light industrial and land together made up the remaining 4%. The company does not report geographical operating segments.[23][24][15]
As a supplementary portfolio breakdown—not separate reportable business segments—the company groups holdings into West End (Central and Borders), City Borders and Provincial. By portfolio value, these represented approximately 75%, 23% and 2%, respectively, at year-end 2025; West End and City Borders together accounted for 98%. By net contracted rent, the approximate shares were 65% West End, 34% City Borders and 1.5% Provincial. The Provincial portfolio is described as Scottish holdings.[16][18][17] [23][24][15][16][16][16][16][18][18][18][18][17]
Company history
Derwent London’s origins date to 1984, when stepbrothers John Burns and Simon Silver established a property business through Derwent Valley Holdings, initially acquiring industrial buildings and improving them through refurbishment and active management. The company was incorporated as Derwent Valley Holdings in 1984.[25][26]
A defining milestone came in 2007, when Derwent Valley Holdings merged with London Merchant Securities, doubling the business in scale and creating Derwent London; the company also converted to REIT status that year.[25][27] In later years, the company completed notable London developments including White Collar Factory, opened in 2017, and the Brunel Building, completed in 2019.[28][29]
Leadership transitioned in 2019 when Paul Williams succeeded Burns as chief executive and Burns became non-executive chairman. In 2021, co-founder Silver retired from the board, and Burns retired as chairman after the annual meeting, succeeded by Mark Breuer.[30][31][32] [25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32]
Sources
- www.derwentlondon.com[1]
- www.derwentlondon.com[2]
- www.derwentlondon.com[3]
- www.derwentlondon.com[4]
- DERWENT LONDON — Press release (2025 Y)
- www.derwentlondon.com[6]
- www.derwentlondon.com[7]
- www.derwentlondon.com[9]
- www.derwentlondon.com[10]
- www.derwentlondon.com[11]
- www.derwentlondon.com[12]
- www.derwentlondon.com[13]
- www.derwentlondon.com[22]
- www.derwentlondon.com[25]
- find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk[26]
- www.derwentlondon.com[27]
- www.derwentlondon.com[28]
- www.derwentlondon.com[29]
- www.derwentlondon.com[30]
- www.derwentlondon.com[31]
- www.derwentlondon.com[32]
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